


Ethereal Serendipity

by Fallen_Ace



Series: Iridescent Epoch [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Draco Malfoy-centric, Gen, Good Lucius Malfoy, Good Narcissa Black Malfoy, Hogwarts First Year, Powerful Draco Malfoy, Smart Draco Malfoy, Smart Slytherins, THEY KNOW WHAT THEY ARE DOING, To Draco and Co. at Least
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-19
Updated: 2021-01-01
Packaged: 2021-03-02 19:08:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,850
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24261850
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fallen_Ace/pseuds/Fallen_Ace
Summary: He is embarking on a path that he cannot turn back on. With one wrong move, he will fail and fall into ruin. But be sure of this. He will never be controlled by Fate.
Relationships: Draco Malfoy & Blaise Zabini, Draco Malfoy & Lucius Malfoy & Narcissa Black Malfoy, Draco Malfoy & Pansy Parkinson, Draco Malfoy & Theodore Nott, Draco Malfoy & Theodore Nott & Pansy Parkinson & Blaise Zabini, Pansy Parkinson & Blaise Zabini, Theodore Nott & Blaise Zabini, Theodore Nott & Pansy Parkinson
Series: Iridescent Epoch [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1751347
Comments: 57
Kudos: 163





	1. Tempting Fate

**Author's Note:**

  * For [TheJoysofReading](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheJoysofReading/gifts).
  * Inspired by [Ineffable Salvation](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23537599) by [Fallen_Ace](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fallen_Ace/pseuds/Fallen_Ace). 



> Thank you to all the commenters on my previous fic, and thank you especially to TheJoysofReading for your wonderful comments. Thank you for inspiring me to finish up this chapter.

There may be villians, overlords, mass murderers that exist in the world, but those who tempt fate are the scariest. 

_Oh what will you do, my petite swallow? Be careful not to be trapped in a cage of your own making._

Draco woke up with a start, his hair matted on his face. He would not consider what he just saw to be a dream or nightmare, but rather a prophecy. Reaching out onto his nightstand, he downed the crisp, cool glass of water, soothing his confused mind. He had been having these dreams for a month now, and they have become more and more cryptic as the time passed. Shaking himself out of his stupor, he cleared his mind of all thoughts and tried to sleep.

“Draco! It is time to get up!” Narcissa’s voice filled Draco’s room. He sighed. Narcissa tinkered with the sonorous charm so only he could hear it.

“Coming!”

He slipped into his robes and strode to the breakfast table. Lucius was already there, leafing through a newspaper. Draco slid into his chair and picked up his knife and fork.

“Did you remember what the plan was?” Narcissa asked after he was done taking his first bite.

“Of course, Mother. I will first go get my robes fitted, Father will go and buy my school supplies, and you will go to Gringotts. I’ll meet Pansy, Blaise, and Theo at Ollivanders and once we are done buying our wands, we will portkey back to the Manor.” Draco recited.

Lucius gave an approving nod, his eyes shining with mirth. “Glad to see that you’ve memorised it, and be careful not to burn down half the Manor again.”

“It was once! And it wasn’t even my fault!” Draco pouted.

“Oh, Lucius is just kidding, right?” Narcissa gave a faux glare at her husband. Lucius just smiled appeasingly. The rest of their breakfast was composed of small talk, and with a pop, they were off to Diagon Alley.

As Draco and his parents went separate ways, Draco leaned on the stool in the robe shop, zoning out. Only when there was a chime of a bell, he turned his head. A scrawny boy with green eyes and disheveled black hair shuffled in. In his mind, Draco sniffed haughtily with disdain. However, on the outside, he portrayed a neutral air. As the scrawny boy sat down on the stool, Draco opened his mouth…

“Hello, Hogwarts too?”  
The other boy’s head reared up and replied with a meek, “Yes.”

“Do you know which house you will be in? Definitely Slytherin for me. Imagine being sorted into Hufflepuff, or worse— Gryffindor.”

The other boy just stared blankly at Draco. “Houses?”

“Once one arrives at Hogwarts, a hat sorts them into different Houses. Slytherin for ambition and cunning, Ravenclaw for smarts, Gryffindor for the brave, but in reality, Gryffindors are just impetuous with no brains, and Hufflepuff for the loyal, they are basically the extras.” Draco ended his explanation with a smirk.

When seeing the boy’s blank face, Draco rolled his eyes. “I am assuming that you were raised by muggles then?” he asked.

“Yes”, the other boy replied. However, there was a hint of steel behind the gaze.

“Your parents are our kind, are they not?”

“Our kind?”

“They had magic, did they not?”

The other boy looked a bit wary, and replied with a dragged out, “Yes… but what does that have to do with anything?”

“Well, then what is the problem? I do not believe that they should let the other kind in, right?”

“Excuse me? What do you mean by that? Just because you are probably from a prominent family does not mean that you can insult people who are different from you! Now I understand why Hagrid said that all purebloods were death eaters, especially the Malfoys!” His green eyes flashed with ire.

Before Draco could reply, their attention was caught by Hagrid’s figure waving at the boy. Draco stared mockingly. He turned his attention away from the great lumping oaf, back to the black haired boy. While the boy was waving, his hand brushed against his fringe and revealed his lightning scar.

Draco froze. In his mind, he was screaming at himself for being an idiot. This thought was then brushed off to make place for a new one,

_‘I mean, if I already insulted him multiple times, what’s the harm in one more? Besides, just because he is the Chosen One, it doesn’t mean shit. He knows nothing about our culture and just starts insulting us with knowledge that comes from prejudiced opinions.’_

With this thought, Draco felt calm enveloping him and his face split to reveal a sneer.

“The famous Harry Potter. I would say that it would be a pleasure to meet you, but that would be a lie.” The employees stared aghast at his proclamation.

“Pardon me? You were the one who was insulting others—” Potter was cut off by Draco’s next words.

“I would refrain from making comments that you do not know the truth about. Would it not be a tragedy if somehow you were sued for slander? Your name cannot save you from some.” With a swish of the robes that Snape would be proud of, he exited the shop. 

Potter was left gaping.

Three figures were chatting in front of the door of Ollivander’s shop when Draco sauntered by.

“Draco!” Pansy cried. “We’ve been waiting for ages!”

“I wouldn’t call five minutes ages, Pansy,” Blaise replied. Theo just smirked. Pansy rolled her eyes before dragging the four of them into the shop.

Ollivander was standing behind the counter and looked up when he heard the bells chime.

“Welcome, may I inquire as to who is in requirement of a wand?” Ollivander said.

“All of us are,” Theo replied.

“Well, ladies first. I’ll let you lads choose when you would like to go.”

Pansy stepped up, trying a variety of wands until one made all the lights flicker.

“Young lady, that is an Elm wand with a Dragon core, 12 and a half inches, with medium flexibility, perfect for charms and spells.” Pansy smiled and tipped her head in a thank you.

Theo was up next, receiving a wand with a Pine and Phoenix core, 11 inches, rigid. Blaise was next, coming back with a Fir and Dragon Heartstring core, 14 inches, supple flexibility.

“Mr. Malfoy, come.”

Draco moved forward and picked up a wand and waved it. Nothing happened. He tried again, but this time, a plant flew towards him. He ducked and stared at the spot where the plant fell. It missed him by a hair. Multiple wands were tried, until one finally let up a flurry of sparks.

“10 inches, Hawthorn, Unicorn Hair, reasonably springy. Interesting, very interesting,” Ollivander smiled a mysterious smile and handed the wand over to Draco. All of them paid and walked out of the store.

“Where are we going now?” Theo asked.

“Oh Merlin. Don’t remind me. Mother made me memorise exactly what I was to do when we went to Diagon Alley. Here, I have the portkey,” Draco reached into his robe pocket and produced a tiny dragon. 

“Nice,” Blaise commented. All of them placed their hands on the object, and with a whoosh, they were back to the Manor.

“Before we chat about our exciting summer, I have something to tell you guys. You see, I met Harry Potter at Madam Malkins and dissed him.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to interludemoon for Betaing this chapter!

“WHAT??” Three voices exclaimed.

“Oh Merlin, you literally just met him! How in Merlin’s beard did you manage to do that?” Theo groaned.

“Should we even be surprised though?” Pansy chirped. Draco gave her an afronted look.

“Nah, remember when we were eight? June 8th?” Blaise added.

“NO! I thought that we agreed to never talk about that!” Draco squawked.

“I cannot believe you just insulted the Prime Minister of dfdsfjldksjf—” Blaise sputtered. A pillow suddenly whacked him in the face, courtesy of the one and only Draco Malfoy.

“Moving on,” Theo said, ignoring the protests of Blaise, “So why did you pick a fight with the O’ Great Harry Potter, Saviour of the Wizarding World?”

Draco’s face fell into a sneer, and his next words were malicious, “He is an arse.” Draco spat. “He said that all purebloods were Death Eaters, especially the Malfoys.” “He has absolutely no concept of the meaning of the word Mudblood, insulting me without asking why I said the other kind should not be let in.” 

“He knows nothing of pureblood traditions and probably nothing of his role as Heir Potter!” Draco tilted his head and added, “His fashion sense is complete shite.”

“Wow, I thought Harry Potter was supposed to save everyone.” Theo exclaimed. “I guess that only applies to the Mudbloods and Blood Traitors. I cannot believe he called us all Death Eaters.”

“Does he know the implications of that accusation?” Theo cried. “Besides, we are only eleven!” 

“Well, I suppose he will be in Gryffindor, the house of brainless idiots.” Blaise sighed. “No surprise there, considering his family’s history,” 

“Funny how they call us bigots!” Pansy sneered.

“Now that all our fantasies of a hero have been shot down and crushed, let us stop talking of this disgrace and instead, how were your summers?” Draco asked, changing the subject. Because as much as he would have enjoyed continuing on trash-talking Potter, they had much more important topics to discuss.

“Oh Merlin. Don’t remind me.” Pansy rolled her eyes. “Whereas normal parents would hire tutors to teach their children subjects they’re not doing well in, my mother decides to make me study charms for eight hours a day!”

“When I asked her why she did not not hire any teachers for my weaker subjects, she answered with: ‘Well, it is much more important to outshine your fellow classmates in one subject rather than be mediocre in all!’” Pansy exclaimed, imitating her mother’s peppy voice.

“I mean, your mother does have a point.” Theo replied. “It is better to excel in one subject because your classmates will worship you in that subject, and you could train in a job that will focus on that one,” 

“There you go with the logic. I hate how you always make sense.” Pansy shot him a tired smile.

“Well, aside from homework, shall we talk about holidays.” Blaise flashed everyone a smile. “Mine was fantastic!. IMAGINE, exploring the whole of Italy ALONE!”

The three others let out a huge groan.

“You’ve talked about this in your letters countless times!” Draco complained. “Never mind talking about vacations, let us move on to Hogwarts. I cannot believe that they won’t let First Years on the quidditch team. That is such a stupid rule! First Years can easily fly as well as the other years.”

Everyone murmured in agreement.“Ugh, this rule is probably for the Mudbloods. Didn’t you find it entertaining that when Dumbledork became Headmaster, many of the so called “Pureblood” subjects were dropped in favour of Muggle ones? Bias right there, and no one can oppose him. Who came with the idea of giving him so many titles?”

“When the Dark Lord supposedly died. Obviously. I supposed you haven’t noticed that the precious Headmaster’s favourite students were in Gryffindor. Oh Merlin!” Pansy cried. “Now that pwecious wittle Potter is there, he is definitely going to make him win the house cup. He is probably going to make something stupid up like bravery, 500 points to Gryffindor for drinking pumpkin juice or something as strange as that. Does he think we can’t see his bias? It is shining without a doubt!”

“Let us look forward to never winning the house cup because of the stupid ways Potter is going to win it!” Theo cried with disgust.

“Winky, bring us some refreshments!” Draco commanded. 

The house elf popped up with the drinks ready. 

Draco smirked and continued, “Now we can toast to that!”

All four of them burst into uncontrollable laughter.

Blaise added approvingly, “How she can always know that what we want is always a mystery.”

“The mystery of house-elves, solved by the deduction of Blaise because of wanting to know how she always gets our drinks correct,” Theo lamented. “Oh, think of the many other people who would have paid for this chance! A tragedy!” 

Theo then ended his lament with a swoon off the bed, Pansy catching him as he fell.

“One would have never thought that you were such a drama queen. However, the title of being the number one drama queen will always belong to you, Draco. Remember when we were five? That was a time…” Pansy reminisced.

“As much as I would like to continue on with the story, are you going to tell your parents about today?” Blaise asked. 

Draco shrugged, and the topic was dropped.

It was soon dinnertime, and the four trekked down to the dining table. Draco's parents were already seated, waiting.

"Hello Lord and Lady Malfoy," three voices chorused, bowing right after.

Narcissa gestured for them to sit, and the four of them sat down. After a short while of small talk, Lucius finally asked the question that the children were waiting for.

"Did anything of interest happen during the trip to Diagon Alley?"

The four of them exchanged some looks, and settled on a decision.

"I met Harry Potter today. He was such a rude git!" Draco exclaimed.

"Please tell me you did not insult him like you insulted the Prime Minister of France," Lucius asked tentatively. 

A loud silence answered his question.

"Well, it wasn't that bad?"

"He threatened to sue him," Pansy deadpanned.

"He called all purebloods Death Eaters! Especially the Malfoys! What were I to do?" Draco cried.

The mood then shifted.

"He said what?" Narcissa asked, a chill in her voice. Draco just nodded.

"Well, I see. Now, let's not talk about someone who is NOT worth our time. Pansy, Blaise, Theo, dears, how were your holidays?"


	3. The Real Start

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The four of them meet Harry Potter on the train on their way to Hogwarts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for the late chapter. I finally understood what writer's block was, but got out of it. Enjoy this chapter!

The days soon blurred together, and Draco found himself getting ready on September 1st for Hogwarts. Although he was looking forward to potions, charms, and transfiguration, sitting in a lecture in History of Magic learning about wars that were already taught to him did not sound appealing.

Although Draco and his friends already brought how most purebloods have already learned all of the information in History of Magic and would they not benefit to choosing a subject that would not waste their time to Lucius, Dumbledore overruled him by stating that everyone should learn together to create a sense of unity.

When Lucius relayed this back to Draco and his friends, they were flabbergasted at Dumbledore’s hypocrisy. Hogwarts sorts their students into different houses, and he is talking about unity?

“Dragon, are you ready yet? It is almost time,” Narcissa’s voice shook Draco out of his thoughts.

“Almost, give me one more minute!” Draco replied. He brushed his fingers through his hair, patting it down and straightened his robes. A look in the mirror caused his lips to twitch upwards, and with a swish, he strided into the foyer.

Narcissa and Lucius were already standing near the door, and Narcissa rushed to Draco, cooing, “Aww, my precious Dragon is growing up.” Lucius stood by, pride shining in his eyes.

“Ready to go?”

“Of course. But is the world ready for Draco Lucius Malfoy?” Draco shot back, a smirk on his features.

Narcissa just shook her head fondly. Draco held both parents’ hands and with a pop, they apperated to Platform 9 and ¾.

“Be sure to write,” Narcissa said with a smile.

“Make the Malfoy name proud,” Lucius said, putting a hand on his shoulder.

“There is no need to worry about that. I will make sure that within this year, everyone will know Draco Lucius Malfoy,” Draco nodded solemnly. “Everyone would either be jealous of me, or want to be me.”

“Have a nice time at Hogwarts!” Narcissa cried. Draco turned from where he was headed to and nodded.

Draco sauntered down the train, searching for his friends. When he reached it, he slid open the door with a bang, signaling his arrival.  
“Did you guys miss me?”

“DRACO!!” Pansy yelled. “We were wondering when you would arrive!” She quickly shuffled to make space on the seat. Draco plopped down and sprawled on Pansy.

“Are you guys excited?” Draco asked.

“What is there to be excited about? We all know we will be in Slytherin, and we already learned most of the content. Besides, we can't even play for the Quidditch team!” Theo deadpanned.

“Well that summed up this year perfectly. Do you think with Potter here, something interesting may happen?” Blaise wondered.

“Possibly, did you hear all the rumors? He was raised by muggles! If he was, and still acts that superior, then I wonder what the world will be like when he is older.” Pansy injected. The four of them sat in thought.

“Then do you guys want to see him?” Draco suddenly asked. “I’ve only interacted with him once, but you guys have not, so you guys should make your own opinions on him.”

“Let’s go then!” Theo stood up, patting down his robes.

“Not to be the bearer of bad news, but who is going to guard our luggage?” Blaise asked.

“I am glad you asked! You see, I learned a new spell— an illusion one to be precise. So I can keep up the illusion of people in this compartment!” Pansy exclaimed.

“And I will lock the door,” Draco added. 

With the spells _procidat deceptionem_ and _Colloportus_ , the four began the search for Harry Potter.

It was a while until they found him, quickly ducking out of the view of the people inside.

“Merlin, he is scrawny for his age, and his hair is awful!” Pansy cried.

“Doesn’t seem like any saviour, with his clothes?” Blaise added.

“The more I look at him, the more I can tell that he has no idea of the Wizarding World,” Theo said. “Wait, is that a Weasley? Okay, he is unredeemable.” Draco smirked and then knocked on the compartment door.  
“Come in!” A voice cried.

The moment Harry Potter locked eyes with Draco Malfoy, his face contorted into disgust.

“This is what I was telling you about, Ron, Hermione and Neville. He is a Malfoy, and I don’t doubt the people with him are Death Eaters. You can never know with those types of people.” Potter said, his words hanging in the air.

Ron’s face switched into confusion, but before he could reply to what Potter said, a voice smoothly injected, “Making friends with Weasleys, blood traitors, and Mudbloods? Why how the mighty have fallen. I do believe that you should check all your facts instead of gossiping like a teenage girl, for you do not know what consequences there might be.” Draco had a languid sneer on his face.

“Pardon me, but how would we be Death Eaters if we were just born or not even born yet? Did your brain turn into mush when you found out about magic?” Pansy’s voice was frosty.

“Oh my, did the fame get to your head? Pity your fame can not help your intelligence,” Theo added.

“And hanging out with these people? The least you could have done was to choose people with value. Well Potter, you just made an enemy of all Slytherins, pureblood or not.” Blaise sneered,

“Guess you just found out that some wizarding families are much better than others, Potter. Too bad you made friends with the wrong sort,” Draco left this line and the four of them exited the compartment, robes swishing as they went.

When they arrived back at their own compartment, they burst into incredulous laughter.

“When you said he was an arsehole, I didn’t expect this!” Pansy exclaimed.

“Did he even hear what he was saying? I never knew that he would be this…” Theo trailed off.

“Did you see their faces, oh Merlin was that fantastic!” Blaise said in between giggles.

“He is definitely going to be in Gryffindor, only those with that kind of prejudice are sorted there. Could he have not actually researched about our history? Well, it seems like our year has gotten more interesting,” Draco laughed.

A knock on the door shook them out of their amusement, and they immediately snapped into the correct facial expression and posture that makes them Pureblood.

“Anything from the trolley?” A voice asked. The four of them exchanged quick grins and took out their money pouches. When the trolley lady left, they were left with a ginormous amount of sweets and pastries. Blaise reached for a chocolate frog, Pansy reached for a cauldron cake, Theo reached for a pumpkin pasty, and Draco for Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans.

“We have such high-end sweets that we sometimes need these so-called ‘commoner’ ones. Isn’t it funny?” Pansy giggled.

“If Mother knew that I was eating so many of these, she would definitely cut off my allowance for a few months,” Blaise added.

“At least mine is kind of healthy,” Theo stuck his nose up in the air, adopting a faux superior expression. “Not something you guys can say.”

“Says the one who ate five packages of toffee in a day,” Pansy teased.

“It was good!” Theo countered.

“Let’s see which card I would get this time,” Blaise injected before the two of them would argue, again. He closed his eyes, and flipped it around for everyone else to see.

“What did I get?” He asked.

“Dumbledore,” Three voices sighed.

“Seriously? Again? Does the company know that people do not want to see the face of an old man when they are eating?” Blaise pocketed the card, sighing.

“ALBUS DUMBLEDORE  
CURRENTLY HEADMASTER OF HOGWARTS  
Considered by many the greatest wizard of modern times, Dumbledore is particularly famous for his defeat of the Dark Wizard Grindelwald in 1945, for the discovery of the twelve uses of dragon’s blood, and his work on alchemy with his partner, Nicolas Flamel. Professor Dumbledore enjoys chamber music and ten-pin bowling,” Theo read out loud. “Oh come on, he’s considered the greatest wizard of modern times? Maybe the greatest wizard of all stupidity and hypocrisy.”

“Why couldn’t they have appointed another headmaster? Like McGonagall even? I know she is a Gryffindor, but at least she is fair!” Blaise ranted. “Do you see the rank that Hogwarts is now? If it wasn’t tradition and you guys wouldn’t be here, then I would have been happy to go to Durmstrang! At least they know how to teach there.”

“Aww, you love us!” Pansy cooed. “But in all seriousness, you are right. Everyone’s education would be way better with a headmaster who understands the importance of tradition. Why are courses being dropped in favour of Muggle Studies? The mudbloods should learn our culture and tradition instead of being offered an easy way out!”

“As much as I enjoy your rants, we have arrived,” Theo quickly injected before Pansy could begin talking once more. The four of them quickly exited the train and looked around for any clue of how they would get to Hogwarts.

A booming voice answered all their questions. “Firs’ years, firs’ years, come here!” Hagrid shouted above the multitude of voices.

“That is Hagrid, and probably the one who told Potter all about us being ‘Death Eaters’. I wouldn’t have expected anything else from a Half-giant and Dumbledore’s crony,” Draco rolled his eyes and curled his lip.

The four of them boarded the boat and before anyone could see, Draco casted a Impervius and warming charm.

Blaise looked around at the other shivering First Years and smirked, “This is the difference between us and them.”

When all of them were shuffled into the Great Hall, most were in awe of the grandiose that Hogwarts provided. The four of them just stood there, exchanging amused glances.

After a while, it was the time they have all been waiting for, the Sorting.

Professor McGonagall now stepped forward holding a long roll of parchment.“When I call your name, you will put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted,” she said. “Abbott, Hannah!” A pink-faced girl with blonde pigtails stumbled out of line, put on the hat, which fell right down over her eyes, and sat down. A moment’s pause —“HUFFLEPUFF!” shouted the hat.

A lull fell, until, “Malfoy, Draco!” was called. Draco sauntered to the stool, and less than a second passed before the hat screamed, “SLYTHERIN!” He swaggered to the cheering Slytherin table, taking a seat in the middle.

“Nott, Theodore!” “SLYTHERIN!”

“Parkinson, Pansy!” “SLYTHERIN!”

And then, “Potter, Harry!” sounded throughout the hall. Potter walked nervously to the seat, and without much deliberation, “GRYFFINDOR!” resounded, and the voices of the Weasley twins were most prominent. “WE GOT POTTER! WE GOT POTTER!”  
Pansy rolled her eyes, “Of course Potter got into Gryffindor, with no brains where else could he have gone?” The other years snickered.

A sixth year questioned them, “Have you guys met him before? Such ire could not have just started from nothing.”

Draco then launched into the story of his meeting in Madam Malkins and the four’s meeting on the train. By the end of it all, most of the table was quiet and listening intently. 

When Blaise arrived, he asked, clueless at the silence, “What did I miss?”

While Theo filled Blaise in with what had occurred when he was waiting for his own sorting— the negative aspect of having a “Z” as the first letter in his last name, the other Slytherins were fuming.

“We should have a word with him,” A fifth year said angrily.

Draco just waved his hand for silence and interjected, “And what use will that do? We should just ignore him, after all, we do not owe him anything, unless he acts out. If he does though, like I know he will, I know exactly what to do—prove him wrong in every single way until he is speechless.” He ended his speech with a dark smirk.

“I like how you are thinking, after all, he is worth nothing of our time,” A seventh year nodded approvingly. “Now, let us waste no more time on him, and instead enjoy all the food.”

All of them dug in.

“Nice speech Dray, you already got them hooked,” Pansy said.

“Of course, this is what makes a Malfoy after all,” Draco replied cheekily.

“Oh god, not this again,” Theo lamented.

After the feast, the first years followed the prefects to the Slytherin Dungeon.

“The password is Slyther Slyther Slytherin. Please do not ask who came up with this week's password,” The prefect sighed. Most of the Slytherin students were giggling.

An entrance appeared and they all trekked in. All the first years looked in wonder.

“This is the place you will be spending seven years of your life in,” The prefect laughed at the wondrous expression most wore on their faces. “Now, our head of house, Professor Snape will be giving us a speech.”  
A door opened with a bang, and Professor Snape glided in. 

“First years, returning years, welcome to Slytherin. Slytherin is a place where people will be treated equally, whereas in the rest of Hogwarts, you will not be able to experience that. There are three rules that must be followed. Number one. No secrets will be spilled outside of Slytherin. Number two. We protect each other, no matter what. We stick together in a united front. Number three, nothing is illegal if you do not get caught. If you sneak out during curfew, then so be it, but do NOT get caught. Be proud that you were sorted into Slytherin,” Snape ended his speech, and with a swish of his robes, disappeared.

“A nice inspirational speech for us all, am I right?” The prefect laughed along with the rest of the Slytherins. “The girls dorms will be on the left, while the boys are on the right. It is not forbidden to go to the other one, but if you are doing something your parents would not approve of, be sure to not be caught.”

“See you tomorrow,” Pansy waved to the boys as she left to go to her room. Draco, Blaise, and Theo left as well, until they reached their room.

“Woah. What are the odds that we are in the same room?” Blaise exclaimed. “And only us three!”

“Pansy can probably sleep in here if she wants. We could just ask for an extra bed right?” Theo added.

“We can do experiments without getting interrupted!” Draco whirled around, the idea hitting him.

“NICE!” all three of them exclaimed.

“Well, we should probably go to sleep, after all tomorrow is our first day,” Blaise said. They all agreed with that, and after they put away their luggage, the lights turned off.

“Wait, do you think that we could ask the house elves to give us midnight snacks?” Theo asked after a few minutes of silence.

“Probably, but maybe get familiar with them first?” Draco snickered. “Are you really that hungry after just eating?”

“Well, no but…”

“Just go to sleep!” Blaise interrupted, annoyed.

“Ooh, precious little Blaisey needs his beauty sleep!” Draco joked.

“Shut up before I steal your hair products!” Blaise said angrily.

“You wouldn’t dare!”

“Try me!”

As the comebacks began to die down, all three of them succumbed to a peaceful sleep, with no idea of what the next day would hold.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Their first day of classes. This year has gotten interesting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is not betad, but I hope there aren't any huge mistakes. Enjoy! This is where the real plot starts.

Draco woke up to the feeling of the cold, hard floor.

“Get up!” Blaise screeched. “I don’t want you to whine about having no time to do your hair again!”

Theo sat up, bleary-eyed, “You do know that shoving him out of bed would have the opposite effect right?”

“I didn’t think that far,” Blaise replied nonchalantly, “Besides, he will not have time to reprimand me when he is doing his hair.”

“I hate how that makes sense.” Theo said, with a deadened voice. Draco just stomped into the bathroom, slamming the door.

\---

They spotted Pansy in the common room, conversing with Daphne and Millicent.

“Hey, it’s time for breakfast,” Blaise tapped her shoulder.

Pansy whirled around, “I’ve been waiting for so long!”

“But there is ten minutes until breakfast… when did you wake up?” Theo questioned.

“Well, we stayed up talking,” Pansy shrugged. “All night,” she added.

\---

“This year’s DADA teacher seems awful. He doesn’t hold a candle to the other ones. Scaredy-cat.” The table had a chorus of voices.

Draco got a fifth year’s attention. “Pardon me, but I just happened to overhear your conversation. Who exactly is the DADA teacher?”

“His name is Quirinus Quirrell. I really doubt he would last a full term, seems like a scaredy-cat, stuttering over his words.”

Draco gave his thanks and turned to face his friends. “Exactly our luck to get a useless teacher. Is this Dumbledore’s plan to slowly eradicate so-called dark magic?”

“That kind of makes sense,” Pansy plastered a look of horror on her face.

“Is this his evil plan?” Blaise gasped.

“Are we going to be overwhelmed by Dumbledore and his minions?”

“Merlin. I was being sarcastic,” Draco stared incredulously.

“You have to agree that we have a point,” Pansy replied.

“You know what? I’m just going to be a good student and eat quietly. I haven’t gotten enough sleep to deal with this,” Draco turned to his plate. A few moments of silence passed, with only background chatter and the clink of cutlery on plates.

“You know what I’m excited for? Potions,” Theo suddenly said. “Sadly, nothing is going to happen this year so we have to get our entertainment from the Gryffindorks.”

“It will be hilarious to see them fail at everything,” Blaise added.

\---

As they settled into the damp classroom, Pansy wrinkled her brows at the setting, “I understand that potions may make a mess, but this is just pure bias. I bet the other teachers have a much better classroom. Way to go Dumbledore, broadcasting your allegiance everywhere. No wonder some hate potions.”

“What did you expect from a school that has someone like him as a headmaster?” Draco interjected.

“Nothing much…” Pansy trailed off when she saw the Gryffindors trickle in, grumbling under her breath, “Ugh, here they come.”

Everyone was seated. With a whoosh of air, the door opened and a black robed figure glided in.

"You are here to learn the subtle science and exact art of potion-making," he began. He spoke in barely more than a whisper, but they caught every word—like Professor McGonagall, Snape had the gift of keeping a class silent without effort. “As there is little foolish wand-waving here, many of you will hardly believe this is magic. I don't expect you will really understand the beauty of the softly simmering cauldron with its shimmering fumes, the delicate power of liquids that creep through human veins, bewitching the mind, ensnaring the senses... I can teach you how to bottle fame, brew glory, even stopper death—if you aren't as big a bunch of dunderheads as I usually have to teach.”  
Silence followed. Then, the Slytherins started clapping. Snape held a hand up, silencing them.

He sneered. “Harry Potter— our new celebrity.” He paused. “POTTER! What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?”

Potter just stared, confusion in his eyes. “I don't know, sir,” He said.

Snape's lips curled into a sneer. “Tut, tut-fame clearly isn't everything,” He ignored Hermione's hand. “Let's try again. Potter, where would you look if I told you to find me a bezoar?”

“I don't know, sir.”

“Thought you wouldn't open a book before coming, eh, Potter?” Potter forced himself to keep looking into those cold eyes. Snape was still ignoring Hermione's quivering hand. “What is the difference, Potter, between monkshood and wolfsbane?”

“I don't know,” said Potter quietly. “How should I know? It’s the first day!”

“Yeah, this is easily a second and first year subject!” Someone interjected.

Snape’s sneer turned nasty. “I assure you, Potter, that if you had even a bit of competency, you would have known the answers,” He turned to the rest of the students. “Well?”

“Asphodel and wormwood make a sleeping potion so powerful it is known as the Draught of Living Death,” Draco drawled.

“A bezoar is a stone taken from the stomach of a goat and it will save you from most poisons. As for monkshood and wolfsbane, they are the same plant, which also goes by the name of aconite,” Theo added.

“Do you see? This is competency in this class. Five points from Gryffindor for cheek,” Snape returned to the front of the class. The Slytherins snickered. “The first potion we will be making is called the Boil-Cure Potion. Pair yourselves up. Detention for anyone who explodes a cauldron.”

Draco and Blaise took a cauldron, while Theo and Pansy took the one beside them. Their friend group had derived a pairing system during the summer. Whoever was the worst at the subject would be paired with the best. This way, all of them would receive adequate scores. They got their ingredients and were almost done with their potions when an explosion shook them out of their concentration.

“Longbottom! You didn’t take the cauldron off the fire,” Snape gestured for Neville’s partner to help him. “Take him to the hospital wing. Longbottom, detention on the weekend.” He waved his hand around and the mess was gone.

Pansy snickered, “Did his snivelling make him unable to read?”

“What could we expect from a blood traitor?” Theo replied. After a few minutes, the potion was completed.

“Professor, we are finished,” Draco said.

Snape glided through the classroom until he was at their cauldron. “See here. This is a perfect example of what competence can make.” He peered at Potter and Weasley’s cauldron. “And this— is the exact opposite.”

When the bell rang, the Gryffindors hurried out, and the Slytherins lagged behind. The DADA classroom was a much better quality than the potions one. Everyone took their seats and waited for Quirrell.

"H-hello and welcome to the defense against the d-dark arts class. M-my name is Q-Quirrell and I'll be yo-your defense teacher. W-we will be learning about dark arts and how to combat them," Quirrell stuttered.

"Oh great. Looks like we won't be able to learn anything this year," Draco muttered.

"D-don't be like t-that," Quirrell replied.

Draco smiled a beautific smile, "Of course not. I was just joking. Would you care to show us a spell? It would be so interesting!"

"Oh yes! It would be a great first lesson to start off from!" Pansy caught on to Draco's plan.

"Oh," Quirrell gulped. "Of course I can!"

"Expelliarmus!" As Quirrell was shouting the spell, his hand was shaking so fiercely that he dropped his wand. It clattered to the floor and rolled to where Draco was sitting.

Draco reached for the wand and when he touched it, his necklace burned red-hot. He almost dropped it in surprise, but managed to plaster a false smile and handed it over to Quirrell.

He exchanged a look with Pansy. "We will talk about this later," he mouthed.

The rest of the classes passed in a blur as Draco's mind whirled with all the possibilities that it could entail. 

When dinner arrived, Pansy, Blaise, and Theo were burning with questions.

"What happened?" Blaise hissed.

"Tell you when we get to the dorms," Draco mouthed.

"Does this have anything to do with your-" Theo was cut off by Pansy's hand. Dinner ended too slowly for them, but they were soon in the safety of their dorm room with multiple anti-evesdropping spells.

"My necklace burned when I touched Quirrell's wand," Draco dropped that bombshell.

"WHAT!" Three voices cried.

"Then you mean?" Blaise said.

"Dark magic. Quirrell is practicing dark magic, and it is harmful to us," Draco replied.

Pansy whirled on Blaise and Theo. "You guys jinxed us!"

"How could we have known?"

"We have to find out what he is hiding," Draco said. "Looks like this year is going to be interesting," He smirked. "Meanwhile, Pansy, we should share a room. Hope you won't mind sharing with us."


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Draco and Co. are getting hints about what is in the Third Floor Corridor, all the while insulting Gryffindors and maintaining innocence.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted this chapter to have more words, but I felt like this would be a good end.

“Oh! I overheard from some Gryffindors that the third floor corridor was forbidden, if one does not wish to die a painful death,” Pansy interrupted with this remark. “It seems that we missed this when we were ignoring Dumbledore on the first day.”

“I’ll write to Father. He must know something,” Draco said.

“Should we write to our parents as well?” Theo asked.

Draco shook his head, “No, I think it is better to keep it quiet for now. We will investigate it more.”

“Sounds good,” the three of them chorused.

Draco sighed, “This year is going to be dangerous. Do you guys have any jewelry that you like?” Pansy took out a jewel encrusted bracelet. Blaise held up a pair of earrings, and Theo took out a ring.

“Just so you know, this will cause your jewellery to be invisible to everyone else except yourself. The spell will prevent us from speaking about it to people other than our group, including one's parents.”

The other three nodded decisively and formed a circle on the carpet. Draco rummaged around his trunk and took out a silver encrusted dagger emblazoned with the Malfoy crest. Slicing a thin line from each of their forearms, he drips their blood into a metallic goblet. He then drops the jewelry into the goblet. Intertwining their hands, Draco started chanting.

_Salvos nos fac Domime  
Defendat ab ignotis  
Defende nos de manu inimicorum vestrorum  
Servo nos ipsi  
Tuere tenebris quippe liberorum  
et custodiat te nostrae usque ad extremum spiritum  
Ut quod nostris in sanguine mercedem.  
Honor reddere_

Wind rippled through the air, rattling the bed frames, the surge of power so strong it almost knocked them off their feet. The candle extinguished, and the room plunged into darkness. The objects inside the goblet were glowing.

Draco smirked, “Come, take back what was originally yours.” His voice had a flowy quality, as if the rush of wind could easily swallow up his words. Pansy, Blaise, and Theo reached for their respective accessories. When their hands made contact, the room glowed brightly, blinding them. The candles flickered back on, as if nothing had happened.

Draco was the first to recover, “This spell will warn you of any malicious feeling from others. An extra protection will be added, such as occlumency, more power, or innate protection against harmful curses. Hopefully, these aspects will never have to be used.”

“When did you learn this?” Pansy asked.

“I browsed through the manor’s library,” Draco replied blasedy.

“Wait, so your parents don’t know you know this spell?” Blaise asked.

“Of course not!” Draco winced at their disapproving expressions. “What? It’s not as if I could go up to them and say, ‘I was researching what spell was on the necklace and I stumbled upon many dark spells that might kill me if I do something wrong, especially since I’m a first year.’”

“Are you meaning to say that you could have died from that spell?” Theo looked incredulous.

Draco just shrugged, “With a higher risk, comes a higher reward. We’re safe, it’s fine.”

Pansy just shook her head in exasperation, “Why are you like this?”

“Anyways, are you going to sleep in the girl’s dorm?” Blaise asked.

“I think I’ll alternate. You guys will probably blow up this room, so it’s better to have a safety net,” Pansy replies. The rest of them couldn’t even protest.

“Okay, that was not my fault. How was I to know that an extra drop could cause an explosion?” Draco adopted a look of innocence.

“YOU KNEW EXACTLY WHAT YOU WERE DOING!” Theo yelled. “I saw you smirk!”

“You just wanted an excuse to redecorate after your parents told you that you weren’t allowed to.”

Draco purred, “Don't you guys know? I _always_ get what I want.”

———

Draco sauntered into the Great Hall with his friends by his side. Breakfast was uneventful, until a ruckus from the Gryffindor table caught his attention. Blaise looked over to where he was staring and sighed, “What are they up to now?”

Draco turned to face him, “Well, nothing better to do than to check it out.” With a whisper of incantation, the voices became clear. After a few moments of listening, Draco's smirk turned vicious. He turned to his friends, "Seems like Longbottom forgot something." He gestured for his friends to follow him, and together they strolled up to the Gryffindor table.

Draco's voice rang clear through the hubbub of chatter from the table, "Longbottom? Did you forget something? Pity you have no brains, so the gift,” He gestures to the remembrall, “Is useless.” He snatches it off the table, raising it above eye level, inspecting it.

“Give it back!” Longbottom shouted.

Draco holds it out of his reach, "What? Longbottom finally growing a spine?"

Before Longbottom could answer, the sharp sound of McGonagall's clear voice travelled over, "What is happening here?"

Potter immediately interrupted, "Malfoy stole Neville's remembrall!"

"Just looking," Draco said easily. The next words were spoken with a chilling tone, "Be careful of your word choice Potter, for we wouldn't want the Saviour's reputation to be blackened, do we." He placed the remembrall carefully on the table in full view of the professor's gaze. You can't deprive a person's right to look, right?"

Potter vibrated in anger, "You insulted Neville!"

"Did I," Draco drawled, "Why don't you ask the people around us? Surely that will satisfy your sense of justice." Multiple voices spoke up for Neville. Draco slid on a sad mask, "Professor, the rivalry between Slytherin and Gryffindor are affecting their opinions. How could the people at the opposite end of the table possibly witness my so-called insults? Especially since they were chatting merrily before this? Surely you, Professor, would not be as biased as to only listen to the Gryffindors?"

Although McGonagall was suspicious of this, she only waved it off, "Don't let me see any of you guys stirring up trouble. I would hate to see anyone here getting detention."

Draco then turned to Potter, "Nothing to say? Then I guess this is over. Good talk," With a condescending laugh, he turned his back on the Gryffindor table and strided out of the Great Hall, his friends beside him.

Once all four of them were out of earshot of the professors, they each burst out laughing.

"Oh my god, that was amazing!" Pansy managed to spit out between giggles. "The dumbfounded expression on all of them!"

"Merlin! You got them good," Blaise said in a bit of awe. "Now I see how you managed to weasel out of insulting the Prime Minister of France, and still remain on his good side."

Draco had a smug smile on his face, "Of course, I'm a Malfoy after all."

"Did you see his face!" Theo cried, "He looked like a kicked puppy!" He mumbled something else under his breath after, trailing off when he saw Draco staring at him.

"Well, if that's what you like," Draco smirked. Theo's face gradually became red. Blaise raised an eyebrow in question.

Pansy snickered, "Aww, that's so sweet. No wonder you didn't want to-" A hand clamped over her mouth, muffling her voice.

"Quidditch!" Theo blurted out. "We have flying lessons today! Are you guys excited?"

The rest of them dropped the topic, but now before Blaise wiggled his eyebrows at Theo, Pansy mouthed something, and Draco eyed him with a Look. Luckily for Theo, Draco took pity on him, " I heard that the broomsticks are awful. Most are Shooting Stars! If only we could somehow fly on our own broomsticks. Pity."

Blaise just stared incredulously, "All of us smuggled our broomsticks inside the castle already. We all know that you will use your free time to fly, even though it is breaking the rules."

Draco shook his head in pretend disappointment, "Blaise, I expected better, I merely meant that we should be able to ride our own brooms freely, after all, it is not our fault that some people cannot afford the better ones."

Pansy gave an aghast look, "Does that mean we have to use those awful brooms? Shouldn't the school have funding? Did it get used by Dumbledork or by the 'light side's' classrooms or professors?"

"And this is why we should have gone to Durmstrang or Beauxbatons," Blaise deadpanned.

Draco just sighed in exasperation, "You know what Purebloods like more than power? Tradition. It was inevitable that we would attend Hogwarts." Theo tsked in sympathy. 

Blaise cast a quick tempus, "Well, we must be off, in case we are late."

"What a tragedy," Pansy cut in with a sarcastic comment. "It's not like we are already in the field."

"Wait, when did we get here?" Blaise cried in confusion. Theo patted him on the back consolingly.

"That explains the decrease of stupidity," Draco snarked. Just as his words were said, Potter and Weasley came into view. "I rescind my statement. A pity. Stupidity came back." This line was purposely said in the earshot of Weasley and Potter.

Weasley's face quickly turned an unflattering shade of puce, "What did you just say?!" He demanded.

Draco shrugged, nonchalant, "I said what I said. It's not my fault that you misinterpreted it."

"Why you!" Weasley rushed at him. Draco sidestepped, Weasley's fist barely missing him. Draco raised an eyebrow in taunt.

A sharp voice cut in.

"Mr. Weasley! Mr. Malfoy! What in Merlin's name are you doing!"

Draco immediately launched into the version of events, not allowing Weasley or Potter to join in, "Madam Hooch! Weasley was accosting me without any provocation!" Madam Hooch turned to face Weasley. "Mr. Weasley! Is this true?"

"He called us stupid!" Weasley retorted.

"I have no recollection of saying that, Weasley," Draco bit back. "Did I mention your names? Do you know for sure that I was talking about you?” He leaned forward, a sneer on his face, “It's not nice to eavesdrop."

Weasley sputtered in indignation, “We weren’t eavesdropping! And besides, you stared at us when you spoke!”

“I sincerely apologise for feeding your paranoia of someone bad mouthing you, even though there is no reason for people to. My wholehearted condolences,” Draco drawled sarcastically. Weasley opened his mouth to argue, but was cut off by the harsh words of Madam Hooch, “Weasley, Malfoy! I do not have time for your petty squabbles, class has started! Come on, off you go.”

Draco smirked when Weasley and Potter glared, "Honestly, it's not as if the world revolves around them."

As all of the students stood by their brooms, Madam Hooch finally began the lesson. 

"Poor Potter and Weasley, they probably can't even ride a broom, especially Weasley, as the school brooms are probably the only ones he could touch in his life. Just like leprechaun gold, wanting, but never being able to have," Draco raised his voice, just enough for the teacher to not hear but for the students, especially the two recipients to hear just fine.

"When you are ready, say 'up'," Madam Hooch placed her hand above the broom and it smacked into her palm. Most of the Mudbloods and some of the Halfbloods were wide eyed. "Remember, focus on your magic to control it. Intent is key."

A chorus of voices sounded, "Up!"

Draco, Pansy, Blaise and Theo were some of the students that got it right on the first try.

"You know Pans, you should join the Quidditch team next year, you would be good at it," Draco remarked.

"And why would I be in a team with testosterone fueled boys?" Pansy questioned.

"Well, we would learn from your tutelage," Draco snarked.

"Ah, such comments move me so," She remarked dryly.

Their banter was interrupted by Madam Hooch. "Since most of you have gotten the basics, with a few _exceptions_ ," Someone snickered. "We will be moving on to grip and mounting a broom." She demonstrated the correct position and walked around the group, commenting on each student.

"Hah, Potter. I bet you can't even stay on your broom. Father taught me a I needed to know. All you need to do is the following my guidance," Draco taunted.

Madam Hooch made her way to Draco, "Mister Malfoy, instead of insulting others, maybe you should use the correct grip."

Instead of flushing, as expected, Draco merely flashed her a cheeky grin, "Ah, you caught me. My evil plan of teaching Potter and Weasley the wrong grip was thwarted."

Blaise choked on a laugh and ended up in a coughing fit. Even some of the Gryffindors were laughing. Madam Hooch's mouth twitched.

A scream cut through the air and all heads whipped around for the source. Longbottom was rising from his broom, his face full of terror. "Help!"

"Longbottom, don't move!" Hooch yelled.

Longbottom swayed and toppled from his broom, hitting the grass with a thud.

"Oww," Longbottom groaned in pain.

"Let's get you checked out. A broken arm." Hooch winced in sympathy. Then, she turned to face the others, "No one is to be on their brooms. If I see anyone disregarding this rule, you will get detention, or be expelled."

When they were out of sight, Draco sauntered into the field, picking something up from the ground. "Oh, isn't this Longbottom's? He dropped his remembrall. I wonder, what should I do with it?"

"Give it back Malfoy! It's not yours!" Potter shouted.

Draco grinned, "How about we play a game, whoever wins will get it." Draco pushed off his broom. "Scared, Potter?"

Potter sneered back, “You wish!” Then, he flew up higher and higher.

“No! Madam Hooch said we can’t go flying!” Granger shouted.

“Oh shut up, it’s not like we will get caught,” Pansy sneered. Then, she joined them, wind brushing her bob cut. “Fancy a game, Potter?”

Weasley also joined the fray, “Let’s beat those Slytherins at their own game!” With no warning, Draco threw the remembrall at Pansy. She caught it easily, flashing a smug smirk. “You know, you aren’t supposed to stand around in this game.” The two Slytherins passed it back and forth, until Potter suddenly dove in between them. Pansy fumbled, but in the end, it remained in her hands. She quirked a grin and executed a series of moves that had the rememball ending in Draco’s hands. “Catch it if you can, Potter!” Draco hurled it at the castle, and to everyone’s surprise, Potter dove to retrieve it. Potter held it up in triumphant glee.

“Mister POTTER!” McGonagall’s stern voice interrupted his celebration. While her attention was diverted, Draco and Pansy landed on the field, with twin expressions of innocence. “Of all the years I have been teaching, never has a student ever disobeyed the rules so blatantly! Come with me Potter.”

“But Professor, it was Malfoy and Parkinson!” A voice cried.

“Quiet. You all are dismissed.” Potter turned back to look at Weasley, a pleading look in his gaze. Weasley just shrugged, showing an expression akin to pity. Both of them sent scathing looks to Draco and his friends. After only they were left in the field, Blaise opened his mouth to ask a question that the rest of them yearned to know. “What do you think will happen to him?”

“Well, if he was normal, he would definitely be expelled. However, since he is Harry Potter, the ‘Savior of the Wizarding World’, I would guess that something good would happen to him, like making the Quidditch team or something.” Theo answered. “It really wouldn’t be a surprise if that happened, since Dumbledore would probably be ecstatic at this opportunity.”

“More bias towards Gryffindors, I suppose,” Pansy drawled. “Though I hate to admit this, he does have talent.”

“What use is talent when the stakes are rigged in favour of him?” Draco sneered, a tinge of bitterness seeped into his tone. “We’ll have to wait and see what happens, but I have a feeling that you are correct, Theo.”

———  
The next day, their group was awaiting some kind of sign that they were correct in their assumptions. With a rustling of wings, multiple owls came flying in, dropping parcels and letters in each recipient’s laps.

“Ah, a letter from Mother and Father,” Draco carefully peeled open the envelope, “I hope that Father has gotten back to be about the thing.”

_Dearest Dragon,_

_Are you doing well? Are you eating and sleeping well? Have you made any new friends? I have heard about Harry Potter arriving at Hogwarts. I do hope you have acted accordingly. I miss you, my Dragon._

_Love,  
Mother_

_Dear Draco,_

_The third floor corridor is dangerous. It would be best if you forgot about it, but I do hope you know what you are getting into if you decide on what is best. I cannot say much, but the news on the Daily Prophet may include an inkling on what is hidden. Severus may have a part, but I warn you. Keep it to yourselves, for some others may be displeased with your investigation. I do hope you will be careful, for some things are better left unknown. Mother and I have sent a package. Make sure to share it with your friends. I hope to see you during Winter break._

_Love,  
Father_

Draco unwrapped the package, and to his and his friends delight, it was filled with many confectioneries. A rolled newspaper caught his eye. _“BREAK-IN AT GRINGOTTS!”_ He showed his friends the letter and the newspaper article.

There was a beat of silence, until Blaise finally interrupted with, “Well, looks like this school year will be interesting after all.”

“WOAH! A Nimbus 2000!” A shout from a Gryffindor table, most likely from a redhead, caught their group’s attention. “Well Theo, you were correct. Seems like he did get on the team.” Pansy sighed. “Now we have to deal with their bragging.”

Draco glanced up at the High Table. Snape’s sneer was more displeased than it usually was, Dumbledore’s eyes were twinkling so much that they could have been called sparkles instead of eyes, and the rest of the teachers seemed neutral. “I should have known. It was probably Dumbledore’s fault. Do you see how twinkly his eyes are?” He huffed in displeasure. “At least we can entertain ourselves with the _Prophet_.”

“Ah yes, the _Prophet_ ,” Blaise added a lilt to the last word. “I do suppose that we would be looking more into the _Prophet_ today.”

A sixth year heard them and laughed, “Just make sure you guys don’t get caught.”

_“Of course not, we are Slytherins, aren’t we?”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case any of you guys were wondering, when they were talking about the "Prophet" in italics, they were talking about the Third Floor Corridor, but were saying "Prophet" to avoid suspicion.  
> The Latin spell translation:  
> Keep us safe,  
> Protect us from the unknown.  
> Shield us from our enemies,  
> Save us from ourselves.  
> Protect us, the dark,  
> For we, your children,  
> Will protect you until our last breath.  
> Take our blood as payment,  
> It is an honor to give back.
> 
> Some old Dark magic rituals do not require wands, as this one did not. Wandless magic is based on intent. To me, it was strange that first years could "control" their broom, but could not do wandless magic.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Draco and Co. find out they need to save the world.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey... so I finally got the chapter out! I'm so sorry to the commenter who asked when I would get this chapter out and I said soon. Whoops, I lied. I'm out of my slump! (Let's hope this lasts)
> 
> Also, I wrote most of this today and it was not betaed, so there might be mistakes.
> 
> Happy New Year!

“Stop pushing!” A voice cried.

“If you don’t move your elbow, I will punch you in the face, regardless of the detentions Filch will give us,” Another voice hissed.

“Merlin woman, don’t be so vicious!”

“I’ll show you vicious!” Pansy snarled, reaching out and grabbing the collar of Blaise’s shirt.

“Will you guys _please_ shut up?” Draco rolled his eyes. A shuffling noise quickly turned them into statues. Draco placed his finger on his lips, miming a _shhh_ sound. Mrs. Norris appeared, and the four of them stared at each other with widened eyes.

They bolted, Blaise swiftly muttering a muffling charm so their footsteps wouldn’t echo in the supposed to be empty hallway. They soon found themselves staring at a large, menacing door.

“Shoot!” Theo couldn’t stop and barrelled into the door, making a huge bang. A click sounded and all of them stared at the door and Theo in disbelief.

“Did the door—”

“Did you just—”

“Who CARES? Just go in before we get caught!” Blaise shoved them in and slammed the door closed behind him.

“So this is what Dumbledore was trying to hide?” Pansy asked, unimpressed at the three headed dog.

“No, it’s guarding something. Most likely a trapdoor or something,” Draco stared at the dog, “We should come back later. Who knows, maybe there will be another clue tomorrow.”

“Do you think we should ask Professor Snape?” Theo asked.

“We could, but what’s the fun in that?” Draco answered.

“Your idea of fun is really skewed sometimes,” Blaise looked wary.

“When was my idea of fun ever skewed?”

“Do you really want us to list them out?” Pansy stared Draco down.

He aquised with a nod of his head, “You’ve made your point. However, it would be beneficial to us if we acquire insider knowledge. Who knows what that knowledge could be used for.”

The four of them sprinted back to their dorm, just in case Filch walked by the corridor again. As they locked the door of the room, Theo finally let out a wince.

“Turns out slamming into a door is really painful,” He lifted up the bottom half of his shirt, exposing a rapidly bruising side, “Merlin, what do they make the door out of? It’s like slamming into a brick wall!”

“At least you didn’t ram headfirst, unlike last time,” Draco snickered.

“That was an accident, okay? Stop mentioning it!” He paused, “But why would Dumbledore have such a dangerous animal guarding a trapdoor? Do you think that it has something to do with the break-in at Gringotts?”

“Huh,” Blaise tapped his chin in thought, “You have a point. Where is it?”

“On the table.”

Pansy picked it up and began skimming through it. With a scowl, she said, “There’s not much in it. The only thing that may have been important is how this news has blown up. I doubt that the goblins would have contacted the reporters, since they were so adamant in covering this up. An outside force is definitely behind this,” Narrowing her eyes, she continued, “And what luck. Harry Potter went to Gringotts that very day.”

“So, what you are saying is that this may as well be Dumbledore's scheme?” Theo asked.

“It is,” Draco intercepted, “There’s not a doubt about it. He sent Hagrid with Potter on that day. I’m guessing that the giant was the one who took it out. No wonder why Father told me to be wary of that middling old dundy.”

“His schemes run deep, but unlucky for him, we have your necklace and smarts,” Blaise smirked.

“So what was the deal with your necklace?” Pansy asked.

“Quirrell made the necklace burn,” Draco pinched the bridge of his nose, “You’ve probably all heard of the prophecy, right?”

“You mean?” Theo asked, eyes wide.

“Yes. The one about Harry Potter and _Him_.”

“Oh Merlin,” Pansy groaned, “Don’t tell me.”

“Blaise,” Draco turned to face him with a sharp smile, “Didn’t you want something interesting to happen? Well, you got your wish.”

“Well,” Blaise shrugged, “It’s interesting?”

“Anyways, what I’m trying to say is that Moldywart is probably not dead.”

“Moldywart?” Pansy asked, “Wait… actually, that’s not a bad name.”

“God I hate him,” Theo rolled his eyes, “He almost ruined us purebloods, over what? A grudge? He was half-blood as well.”

“Wow, I’ve never felt so lucky to have a neutral family,” Blaise said, “But, yeah, almost all of the Slytherin purebloods know about the prophecy. I can’t believe Dumbledore wanted to hide it when some of our family members were right there.”

“So you think he’s back?” Pansy asked.

“Well, my necklace burned, so it’s either him or another lunatic,” Draco sighed, “It wouldn’t be the real Quirrel either. Remember, Moldywart never learned how to be a Pureblood. His expressions can be seen through. His glances towards Potter had maliciousness embedded in it.”

“Well, we’re fucked!” Theo raised his hands in exasperation, “What do we do against a homicidal maniac and a prejudiced idiot?”

“We’re Slytherins, we do what we do best. Scheme,” Draco looked at his friends, “We find and take what’s underneath the trapdoor before they do. But first, we should follow Potter. He’s bound to let loose some clues.”

“Wait,” Blaise held up a hand, “Are you saying that Dumbledore let Moldywart in? Against defenceless kids?”

“You just got that?” Pansy asked, nonplussed.

“What the bloody fuck? Maybe I should have just gone to Durmstrang or Beauxbatons.”

“Sorry about that Blaisy,” Theo slung an arm over Blaise’s shoulder, “But you’re stuck with us now. Besides, you were the one that jinxed us. Take responsibility.”

“Are you sleeping with us?” Draco asked Pansy.

She glared at him, “I don’t think any of us will be sleeping tonight.”

“Should I ask Mother how to get rid of a Three-headed dog?” Blaise asked.

“No, we shouldn’t let our parents get involved in case _He_ suspects them,” Draco groaned, “Fuck. Potter wasn’t wrong about the dark mark, but who knew that it would prove a huge problem?”

“It’s best to keep it a secret,” Theo huffed, “But hey, we can actually make fun of the Gryffindors with a legitimate reason!”

“Yeah, at least there’s that.”

“So we actually have to huddle in the library like Ravenclaws?” Pansy yelled.

“I’ll ask Mother to send a storage necklace with half the library,” Theo answered, “She’s always wanted to give me one.”

\---

_Samhain_

“TROLL! TROLL IN THE DUNGEONS!” Quirrell burst into the Great Hall, heaving and panting, and then proceeded to faint.

Draco’s eyes wandered to the Gryffindor table, where three distinct figures were missing.

“It’s started,” He uttered.

All four of them turned their eyes to the teachers. Most of the professors were wide-eyed and in shock, but Dumbledore’s eyes were gleaming.

“What’s started?” Marcus asked, “Malfoy. Don’t you dare stir up any trouble.”

“What do you mean?” Draco blinked innocently, “I’ve never been in trouble in my life.”

“Just,” Marcus sighed wearily, “Don’t get caught.”

“We’re only eleven,” Pansy uttered, “What can we possibly do?”

“Exactly,” Blaise added.

“And besides, trouble usually tries to find us.”

“God, you guys are even worse than the Weasley twins,” A sixth year muttered.

“Relax,” Draco drawled, “We won’t besmirch the Slytherin reputation. Let’s go see the fun!”

“Why, I thought you would never say that,” Pansy laughed.

With a nod to Severus, they were off.

Following the noise, they ran to where the troll was, and hid behind one of the doors, with a perfect view of the action.

“Wow, Weasley isn’t bad with a wand,” Blaise whistled.

All three turned to stare at him.

“His wand use is pretty good compared to the others.”

“Fuck, they used _wingardium leviosa_ to knock out the troll?” Pansy sneered, “Isn’t the mudblood buried in books all day? How come she doesn’t even know how to use a stunning spell? Or even a binding spell?”

The sounds of voices came closer.

“What is happening here?” McGonagall exclaimed, and with a swish of her wand, the troll was dealt with.

“Severus is bleeding!” Draco hissed.

“Wait what?” Three heads peaked out of the doorframe.

“Scratches. They look like the Three-Headed dog’s doing!” Theo gasped, “He knows something?”

“He’s a potion master. He’s loyal to Dumbledore,” Blaise hummed, “There must be tests once you get through the trapdoor! It’s related to potions. The thing hidden must be really important.”

“What does Moldywart want the most?” Pansy turned around to face them, “Power? No. The extinguishment of Mudbloods? No. Immortality?”

“The Philosopher's Stone!” Draco exclaimed.

“I thought that was just a legend!” Theo cried.

“Don’t you know? All legends have a hint of truth, and my gut is telling me that we’re correct.”

“Write to your parents. Ask for all the books containing information about the Deathly Hallows. We have to get the stone before Voldemort does!” Draco paced around, “Don’t let the past become the future.”

“Fuck!” Blaise spit out, “Oh my god, what did we get into?”

“I don’t know,” Pansy took a deep breath, “But what I know is that we can’t trust someone like Potter to save us.”

“So we’re saving the world?” Theo laughed hysterically, “Four eleven year olds saving the world. And Slytherin ones!”

“Gryffindors can’t be trusted to wipe their own ass. Potter and his party can’t last a day without outside help. We aren’t saving the world. We are saving ourselves and our family. Remember this. We are Slytherins, not Gryffindors. We can’t save everything, but at least we can save ourselves, and if that’s to save the world, then so be it,” Draco’s breath slowed, “Now, put on our Pureblood masks, we have things to accomplish, and freaking out will not do anything to help.”

All four of them strolled by the wrecked bathroom. 

“Malfoy, Parkinson, Zabini, Nott! What are you four doing here?” Severus snapped.

“Going back to our chambers, Professor Snape,” Pansy answered calmly, “Was the troll here?”

“Yes,” McGonagall answered sharply, “Proceed to your dorm. The troll is already dealt with.”

“Goodbye Professor Snape,” Draco waved at him, “Did you know an adequate rest can increase the rate of healing recovery, especially when used with many potions?”

Severus’s pupils shrank.

“Wow, after that ordeal, don’t you think Quirrell will need to have a good rest?” Blaise added, “Poor man, he’s probably traumatized. In all the time of his life, this would probably be the most shocking event. I know it is for me.”

“Potter! Weasley! Granger! 50 points from each of you!”

Once they got to their dorm, they collapsed from the adrenaline, “Do you think he got our hints?”

“Prattling so much about life, I think everyone there thought you were crazy!” Pansy laughed.

“The Gryffindorks are totally going to be incensed about the loss of points! And from Harry Potter, no less!” Theo snickered, “Serves them right for nosing around where they don’t belong!”

Blaise stood up and walked over to his desk, “The letters need to be sent.”

“And I almost forgot about that! How did this easy and comfortable life turn into saving the world?” Pansy bemoaned, “It’s all your fault, Blaise!”

“At least we won’t be bored out of our minds!” He lowered his head, “But it’s not all my fault! Blame Potter!”

“Blame Potter,” Draco uttered, “Let’s do that.”

“Blame Potter it is!” Theo sat up, “Pass me a quill and parchment, will you?”

_Dear Mother and Father,_

_I trust that this will find you in good health. Hogwarts is alright for now. My grades are a comfortable balance between Es and Os. I have something to beseech of you both, if it is not a bother. As you both may know, the Hogwarts library books are… lacking, to say the least. I really would not want to breathe in more of the air where the Mudbloods are at. Blaise, Pansy, Theo, and I are becoming interested in the myth of the Deathly Hallows. The concepts are very interesting, to say the least. Could you pretty please send some books from our personal library to us using a storage item? The curriculum is becoming boring, since we have already learned all of it years ago. Many thanks in advance! Mother, my friends said that they loved the sweets sent last time, and send their love. Father, you do not need to worry, for the Malfoy reputation is still squeaky clean! There is a really annoying person though… you guessed it. Potter. I know that becoming friends with him would have been the good decision, but once I heard the prejudice come out of his mouth, we could never be friends. Please do not miss me too much!_

_Your loving son,_

_Draco_

\---

“What did they say?” Pansy asked, sitting on the bed.

Draco unfolded the letter.

_Dearest Dragon,_

_We are glad to see that your grades have not changed. As for your request, we are happy to help. This storage bracelet has all of the books containing information regarding the Deathly Hallows. We hope this will be of use, and tell Pansy, Blaise, and Theo that those sweets were nothing in the long run compared to the happiness of our darling._

_Love,_

_Mother and Father._

“Aww, your parents are so nice!” Blaise cooed, “You’re our little Dragon as well.”

Draco sneered, “Blaisy, it’s not as if your Mother does not call you a cute nickname as well.”

“Nevermind that, but since we all have our storage items, shouldn’t we open it and start searching?” Theo cut them off.

With a pinprick of blood, each of their storage spaces glowed, and a mountain of books toppled on the floor.

“Well, let’s get searching.”

Hours passed and the four of them were getting tired.

“Merlin, how much repeated information will I read?” Pansy sprawled on the floor.

“Information… the philosopher’s stone is something that can grant immortality… and gold…” Blaise read out loud.

“Ah ha!” Theo cried, “It was never known what the philosopher’s stone was made of, but people think it may have been made out of lifeblood, causing that blood red colour.”

The other three crowded around Theo, looking at the sentence he pointed at.

“Okay,” Draco said, “We can use our blood and insert a bit of lifeforce to create our fake philosopher’s stone. We can trick them, since Dumbledore still markets himself as a kind man, he would never use it, and Potter is too dumb to do that.”

“The stone gives off lifeforce, right?” Pansy asked, and then continued, “This is perfect! They won’t even know the difference! And no one will ever suspect it was us, since once lifeblood is given, no one knows who or what it was connected to! A few potions and we’ll be fine!”

“Well, I guess dark magic is superior. Imagine people’s faces when they realized that Slytherins who used dark magic saved them!” Theo cried.

“I seem to have read something like this somewhere,” Blaise muttered, “It’s definitely in one of our family books.”

“We’ll find it,” All four of them nodded.

“The darkness will protect her children.” 

“We should take an unbreakable vow,” Draco said.

“Fine by me.”

“Same.”

“Sure.”

All four of them sat in a circle, holding hands.

“Lady magic, all four of us pledge to be loyal to each other forever, and to never tell anyone who is untrustworthy of what we do together. If we break this, our magic will be stripped from us forever.”

A white strand emerged from each of their wands, connecting a string of light around each other.

“So mote it be.”

The leftover magic began dissipating after a few moments and all four opened their eyes at the same time.

Draco opened his mouth to say something when Blaise’s stomach grumbled.

“Let’s get supper,” Draco paused, as if debating whether to say it or not, “We may be Slytherins, and I may sound like a Hufflepuff like this, but I love you guys.”

“We know. We love you as well.”

“Well, that’s enough sappiness for the day. I’m hungry,” Blaise smiled, “Group hug?”

They all shuffled together.

“Imagine if the rest of Hogwarts saw this display!” Pansy shuddered, “Our reputations would be gone. Poof, they would disappear.”

“Whatever, let’s go,” Draco can’t help but let out a tiny grin.

\---

“Go Slytherin Go!”

“It’s Potter’s debut day,” Draco sneered, “What a bloody farce. Dumbledore just bending the rules for his precious Golden Boy.”

All four of them were wearing Slytherin ties, waving flags of Slytherin green.

“Yeah, yeah, we know you’re bitter,” Blaise teased.

“I’m not bitter! I already knew that something like this would happen,” Draco huffed, “Pansy, do you want to try out with me next year?”

“Why would I do that?” Pansy crossed her arms, “Don’t give me those puppy eyes,” After a beat she relented, “Fine.”

“Here comes badass Pansy,” Theo cried, “You act all lady-like but you can kill a person with that throw.”

“Of course,” She sniffed, “Parkinsons are like that.”

“And oh! Potter’s broom is wiggling like mad! Are his nerves getting ahead of him?” Lee Jordan’s voice rang out.

“Quirrell,” Pansy hissed, “What in Merlin is that Mudblood doing?”

“They think it’s Severus?” Draco snapped, “I can’t believe they say Potter saved the world!”

“He’s helping Potter for Merlin’s sake!” Theo rolled his eyes, “Is she setting fire to Severus’s cloak? Idiot! She has the fucking wrong person!”

“At least Quirrell stopped casting the spell,” Blaise sneered, “I bet they didn’t think of the consequences of if they were wrong because a Slytherin just _has_ to be evil. Do they really think that Dumbledore would employ someone evil? Oh wait. He employed Quirrell.”

“I can’t watch,” Draco covered his eyes with his hand.

“AND POTTER CATCHES THE SNITCH! GRYFFINDOR WINS!” Lee Jordan exclaimed.

“Of course they did,” Draco grit out, “And everything good happens to the Gryffindors. We have to move up our plans so none of them can get the stone.”

“Yeah, alright.”

“We have to make sure no one knows what we’re going to do, and make sure Quirrell won’t suspect us. The moment we have full confirmation he’s Moldywart, we take action,” Draco commanded.

“What are you guys whispering about?” A seventh year asked.

“Nothing much, what did you think of the match?”

“Okay… I won’t ask.”

As they walked back to the castle, they met the trio.

“Brainless fools,” Draco muttered under his breath as they passed each other.

“Why, Malfoy, are you jealous that we won and that Harry got to play on the Quidditch team?” Weasley taunted.

“No, after all, we all know that it was based on personal bias,” Draco sneered, “And we all know that counts for nothing.”

“Granger,” Pansy glared, “Do you ever think before you act? I know you are a Mudblood, but c’mon, surely even you should know good from bad.”

“What did you call her?” Weasley screeched.

“Something we all know is true,” Blaise answered levely, “Weasley, even if you are a Blood Traitor, you should still know this.”

“Don’t get all flushed and red,” Theo drawled, “But that’s the only way you can express yourself with a little pea brain like yours, right?”

“Don’t listen to them,” Potter turned to Weasley, “They are all Death Eaters anyways.”

“Oh Merlin,” Pansy cried, “Potter! You’re still hung up on us being Death Eaters? We’re eleven for fuck’s sake! Even conversing with you makes me want to vomit.”

“You know what you should do?” Draco directed a blank gaze at the trio, “You should confront your own prejudices before accusing us of them. There are always reasons for our actions, and ways of thinking. Dig deeper before you judge.”

“You didn’t need to do that,” Theo said.

Draco sighed, “I was just tired of their accusations. They have brains for something! They are expected to save the world, and they should learn that the world isn’t black and white.”

“Being Slytherins is sometimes exhausting,” Pansy huffed.

“But we wouldn’t have it any other way,” Blaise finished, “C’mon, let’s stop thinking of them and actually finish our homework that we’ve been pushing off.”

“Oh no,” Theo paled, “Don’t we have almost a week’s worth to finish today?”

“I’m not staying up all night again,” Pansy cried, and they all started running back to the dungeons, laughing all the way there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks again for reading! It would be nice if you left a comment or kudo if you liked it!
> 
> I have a [Twitter](https://twitter.com/Kwon_NT). You're welcome to talk to me about HP on there!

**Author's Note:**

> This could also be titled: "Draco Malfoy and the Year he Dissed Harry Potter  
> Hagrid already tells Harry about the Purebloods and how they were all "Death Eaters", so Harry would already be prejudiced against them. RIP  
> So I headcanon that Draco would be speak very formally with strangers, aka not using contractions unless with familiar people such as his friends and family. My formal writing finally came into use!

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Ineffable Salvation](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23537599) by [Fallen_Ace](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fallen_Ace/pseuds/Fallen_Ace)




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